1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a program. More particularly, the invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, and a program for easily searching and managing numerous moving image contents.
2. Description of the Related Art
The technology for managing a large number of moving image contents has been gaining widespread acceptance.
Huge amounts of moving image contents continue to be broadcasted and recorded every day by broadcasting stations in particular. The ever-growing quantities of moving image contents accumulate uninterruptedly. It is thus extremely difficult to search the numerous moving image contents for specific contents.
One technique for bypassing the problems above (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-134589 (hereinafter referred to as Patent Document 1)) involves making comparisons between the metadata of some of the representative images included in the moving image contents targeted for search on the one hand, and the metadata of the moving image contents already registered and accumulated on the other hand, in order to search for and retrieve similar moving image contents.